Please Don't Guide My Sleigh Tonight
by June Dune
Summary: The season of hustle-and-bustle and good cheer has come around once again for Santa 'Botnik and his elves, and society isn't getting any better. A shortage of reindeer leave them hurrying to find a solution until the so-called fastest 'reindeer' alive comes to the rescue. The only problem is that Santa would rather undergo a workout program than accept his help. AU
1. The Benevolent, Gift-Giving Genius

**Happy holidays, everyone! As promised, I have a little Christmas story. Hopefully, this doesn't span more than ten chapters, and my goal is to finish this before New Year's. And I promise this isn't crack. Enjoy!**

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><p>Box. Fold. Wrap. Send out.<p>

Box. Fold. Wrap. Send out.

Those were the orders Orbot received and the orders he was carrying out. The small, red, orb-shaped robot grasped another toy sent from another robot in the assembly line, placed it on top of a box, folded, wrapped, and sent it out, following the commands built into his programming. His holly green pointed hat that ended with a bell drooped over him, and his red and green outfit fit awkwardly over his hinges and gears. He fought the nagging sense to tug at it. He couldn't really complain though since that was the official uniform for one of Santa's workers.

Thousands of robots bustled in the large room deemed 'The Present Hall', and they worked all in one assembly line, which started at one side of the hall from making basic toys and zigzagged all the way to the end, which was the boxing and wrapping station. His station. The mechanical elves were not loud with their voice but with their work. Their metal limbs clanged boisterously with remote-controlled cars, fairy princess toys, or whatever else they were required to assemble.

Still, Orbot didn't mind the noise of the other elves but enjoyed the occasional glance toward the homely windows where outside of them fat snowflakes rained heavily down in the night. It was only a week until Christmas and the 'hustle and bustle' would only get more hectic as the days passed, so it was a nice relief for the robot to look at a change of scenery rather than looking upon panicking elves and Christmas presents being tossed about.

Box. Fold. Wra-

"Incoming!" a voice called before Orbot barely deflected the gift-wrapped toy thrown at him. The owner hastily bounced over, his elf ears hanging incredibly out of place on his yellow, metal, cube-shaped structure.

Orbot finished wrapping his current present and sent it along the line. "Cubot, what am I going to do with you?"

"Come and deliver the Christmas letters with me, that's what," Cubot handed an armful of envelopes over to Orbot.

Quickly, he scanned through his data for an excuse. "But I have to finish up all these presents—"

"Just find another elf to do it," his partner dismissed, already bouncing away. "C'mon, Santa's workshop is this way!"

It seemed Cubot's programming wasn't too slow to identify his pattern of making excuses after all. The orb-shaped robot merely whirred a low tune in defeat and leapt from his chair to follow. On their way, they passed many other robot elves, some juggling boxes and others fumbling plastic and metal junk for toy parts. Orbot wished he could be a part of the grunt work rather than doing this.

Cubot sprung to two large, ornately-decorated red and gold doors. To the left of them, a sign neatly printed in opulent cursive: Santa's Workshop. With a minute push, the doors eased open just enough for the cube-shaped robot to slip through the small slit and Orbot to reluctantly pursue. He could vaguely process merry holiday music lazily playing in the background, and because of that, he almost let his guard down.

Until he nearly ran into a wooden board.

"I wonder why he leaves so much junk on the floor," Cubot commented as he jumped over the overturned table.

Orbot sprung onto the top of the sideways table to view the whole main workshop. It looked as if a winter storm cruised through. A torrent of gaudy decorations lay littered on the floor, on walls, and stuffed in the shelves, which also contained other various ornaments. The flashy, glittering green and red holly wreaths swathed the walls of the workshop, and several towering Christmas trees of different colors and wacky shapes were huddled in the four corners of the place. Tables were overturned except one that was overflowing with various plastic pieces and metals and half-attached toys and snow globes. The room itself probably would've looked more elegant and festive if the decorative exterior wasn't plastered with what seemed to be unfinished projects.

The source of the jolly music was a wind-up toy sitting not far from the working man, contrasting greatly from the disaster scene. To both the elves, Santa's Workshop was gigantic enough when it wasn't this chaotic, so having towering obstacles to hurdle over made it impossible to traverse across the place. While they approached, Orbot couldn't help but take note of his boss.

His boss's rounded blue glasses hung on the edge of his pink nose and his taut cheeks were a rosy red as he toiled over a strange-looking contraption, probably a toy experiment of some kind. The iconic red and white coat fit him snugly and the only facial hair upon his visage was a static-y orange moustache which stuck in every direction imaginable. A cup of eggnog sat within his reach, and several other mugs lay strewn on the floor, stained with the same liquid.

No elf must've been allowed in there for quite some time for that mess to pile up.

During his examination of the room and his boss, Cubot had gotten several feet ahead, approaching the large oak desk with glee. "Oh, boss, boss!" he cried, approaching the ledge to climb onto.

The man's head snapped up, and a look of anger glinted underneath his blue spectacles. Panicking briefly, Orbot dived forward and managed to climb up onto the desk before his less-competent co-worker could. "What is it?" the man said slowly, peering down at the red elf.

"Here, boss," the orb-shaped robot said, handing the rotund man his mail, "Christmas letters. From the children."

"Oh, really...?" The man grasped an envelope and slit it open, presenting it and reading the letter in a flash. His expression, which was already not so happy, became quite disgruntled when his eyes met the epistle. "Not another one of these," he growled to himself, thrusting a metal part out of his hand. There was a loud _clack_, and the merry music halted from the wind-up toy.

Cubot peeked over the desk in curiosity, crawling slowly to not be a distraction.

Grasping his orange moustache, the man pulled at it, the hairs threatening to cause pain if plucked off. Turning to his red elf, he burst, "Orbot, can you believe this?" He studied the letter for the correct quote, and then in his best imitation of a little kid, he read, "Jerry says, 'Santa, I've been very, very good this year. My older brother Tom doesn't believe in you, but I do. I wish for...' and he lists all these things. You think I'm going to give someone all these things for just saying that they believe in me, which is most obviously true?"

"What a difficult boy," Orbot answered in what seemed to be a deadpan tone, but the man ignored the slight.

"And get this—! He says, 'I'm looking forward to your visit on Christmas Eve. I hope to see your reindeer and your magical sleigh and your white beard and red suit and all the presents you'll have for me. Merry Christmas, Saint Nick!' "

The cube-shaped robot leaped onto his boss' shoulder. "At least he got your name sort of right," he replied in an optimistic tone.

"It's Saint Ivo Robotnik, Cubot," he snarled, "But that's beside the point. What absolutely infuriates me is that 'Jerry' only _asks_ for stuff...like I'm some present ATM! Tell me, what side of the list is he on? Tell me he's naughty!"

Feeling the pressure of his boss' intent stare, Orbot waded through the stacks of papers on the oak desk, finally finding a clipboard with an official-looking paper. "Uh...he's nice."

The sudden pound on the desk scared the living Christmas lights out of Orbot. "What!? How—how can they decide he's nice?! He's greedy, always asking for stuff, never satisfied, throwing his own brother Tom under the bus..."

"The kid's writing a Christmas wishlist just like the other kids, Saint Kringle Claus," Cubot offered helpfully.

"Exactly! Why don't they ever send letters asking me how _I'm_ doing or what inventions _I've_ come up with? How rude of them!"

Orbot tried to coax as gently as possible with the most reason inserted. "That's not how the world works, boss."

"Tell me, where is he from?" he demanded, ignoring the elf's statement entirely.

"Station Square in the US."

"Figures." Saint 'Nik stood up to from his cluttered desk, hoisting his weight to shift out of his office area to another larger desk filled with various colorful parts and musty tools. "Everyone in that area believes preposterous myths about me. Myths, I say! To think I could circle the world, delivering presents to every good little boy and girl in a matter of a few hours with just magic is such an egregious insult to my work!"

Orbot sighed, cupping a robotic hand around his mouth towards his partner. "He's monologuing again."

"And using big words," Cubot adlibbed.

Saint 'Nik spun around and slammed his palms onto the table. "I mean, I like this fuzzy red suit and all, but I don't have a white moustache and beard. What's wrong with red? Facial hair only becomes white naturally because of age, and much age at that. Do you think an old man would be toddling around, making and giving gifts to everyone when he himself is on death's row? I think not!"

"And talking to himself."

"It's my life's work to make these gifts, and it was my father's and grandfather's life's work as well. It's not some silly old man that lives forever and has found an entire fictional, supernatural race of midgets with deformed ears that can make toys by the power of..._magic_." With fury, he flipped over the table, pieces large and inscrutably small flying in every direction. "It's entirely illogical; that's what it is!"

Sensing that it was starting to get out of hand, Orbot kept a safe distance above Santa on the top shelf of a bookcase with Cubot hiding behind him. "Everyone agrees that magic is basically unreal and ill-proven to be otherwise. There's no need to get worked up about it."

"Yeah, 'specially since you have that whole 'new reindeer' thing to worry about," Cubot joined.

'Nik swiveled around to meet his creations, his brow furrowing even deeper if that were possible into his navy blue spectacles. Both robots winced and prepared themselves for the explosion. However, Santa merely exhaled and slumped against the wall, shaking his head in obvious disappointment. "The problem is not _that_ bad. I have a solution."

"A solution that can get you around the world in one night?" Orbot countered, " 'Cause since _he's _ gone, you're definitely gonna have to find something at least half as fast as him to even have a chance to meet the quota."

Santa 'Botnik waved his hand, trying to act flippant but failing. "I was thinking about finding real reindeer, y'know. Then build and somehow attach jetpacks to them. The problem is to prevent them from combusting in thirty seconds."

Cubot put a finger to his metallic square head. "The jetpacks or...?"

"Are you sure that'll work, boss?" Orbot asked hesitantly, "The variables are innumerable—"

"You can't be serious!" the fat man exclaimed, snapping back to his angry self and staring at the two tiny, geometric-shaped robots, "Do you think I'm not capable of building jetpacks that'll fly reindeer across the world? Do you think that all this evidence, all the toys I've made, the robots—the 'elves'—I've built to help me with these toys, the workshop that I've designed cleverly hidden from all mankind, is not proof enough of how intellectual of a man I am, un-needing of an excuse like magic to cover my hard genius work?!"

"Uhhh...no?"

Orbot quickly shoved Cubot away and leaped onto the fat man's shoulder, red and green clothes ruffled in the movement. "Sir, we're not questioning your intellect, but perhaps, with all this stress that you're undergoing, especially since it's December, you might not be thinking right—"

With a single glare disguised under the red-suited man's glasses, Orbot was shut up. "Orbot, Cubot, find six, fresh, young-looking reindeer in the next two days. Alert the other elves of this order; it's top priority. I need to get back to my work."

"Don't be such a martyr, boss..."

"Now!"

They quickly disappeared by the ornate gold doors, and all was silent, save for a deep, muffled sigh from the room they were previously in. The two dressed-up machines exchanged glances before going on their way back to the Present Hall to spread the word about Santa's new orders.

Sometimes, it seemed to Orbot he was working for a mad scientist rather than a benevolent gift-giver.


	2. One Blizzardy Day

Santa 'Botnik adjusted his jaunty, auburn moustache as he walked in a brisk manner down the hallways, observing each robot's work. Those large, orange robots were in the process of fitting toys together from adding wheels to toy cars and heads to dolls. Just in time, Saint 'Nik noticed one of them nearly destroying a Nutcracker while trying to piece it together. "No, you dunderhead! The feet attach to the ankles, not the wrists!" he scolded and grabbed the toy from the worker, whose bright automated blue eyes stared at him motionlessly. In anger, he threw it back into the robot's three-fingered hands. "Just fix it. You know how important fitting toys together is, especially if kids get malfunctioning toys and get upset. And you know what happens if they get upset!"

He continued to stalk down the hallway, his belly bouncing in rhythm, until he got to the exit. "Stupid Egg Pawns. I can't leave them alone with one thing before they mess up something. I just wish they could be a bit smarter." However, though he hated to admit it, he was to blame for that. But how was it fault when the entire world was demanding toys at a ridiculous rate? He stomped through another assembly line, ignoring the glances from his elves. "They never give me enough time to actually make anything worthwhile," he muttered aloud.

He didn't care if his robots overheard. They would just have to deal with knowing they were inferior and incompetent.

The clanging and automated voices grated upon his ears while he examined the owners of such irritating noise. He hadn't been out of his office—oops, "workshop"—for an entire week with nothing but the persistent smell of curdled eggnog and the absurdity of his own thoughts. Sometimes he didn't know which was worse: the deafening sound of his minions or the silence of dwelling on what he was even doing with his life.

Hurriedly, Santa stepped into the kitchen to snatch a couple of cookies and be on his way. But the overpowering scents of hot pastries caused him to linger a bit. In a split-second decision, he plopped down in a chair by a table covered with an evergreen tablecloth and slowly consumed his supply of baked goods. He needed a break anyway, and the kitchen was always a fantastic place for him to rest and get his mind juicing again.

Still, the tart, sinking feeling and the stress of it all never left him, as occasionally elves bustled in and out the kitchen doors so he could hear sporadic sounds of labor and chaos. Santa still had so much to do, and Christmas wasn't that far ahead. There were still so many prerequisites to fulfill and people to check on and places to be that he sometimes wondered how, despite his amazing genius, he could handle such a task like Christmas. Many would argue that it was easy, that the rest of the year was practically a long, drawn-out holiday.

Santa slammed his fist onto the table, the sound echoing loudly. "I want eggnog," he ordered, not even bothering to look at the elf that would obey him. If only his grandfather Gerald Robotnik would've known what he was getting into when he thought he could bless all the children of the world with Christmas presents, his granddaughter (not grandson, mind you...) being his inspiration. Who knew that it would blow into a superficial holiday of astounding proportions?

Ivo didn't know that at the time; that was for sure when he took the mantle of Santa Claus years ago. Thoughts continued to ravage his mind, and he sipped thoughtfully on his newly-received mug of eggnog. The doors of the kitchen swung once more and a strident "boss!" allowed for him to resume his serious look.

"Yes, Krabmeat?" he asked the robotic crab, who was having trouble with his elf costume immensely.

"I've seen that you're stressed, sir, so I looked at the letters addressed to you instead of giving them to you. Just to lighten your burden," his minion started but stopped, seeing the fat man's facial expression turn from calm to peeved. Then the robot began to cut off his every word abruptly, like a stammer. "I s-saw in the letters th-that kids wished to see your reindeer and to see you come down the chimney and talk to them. I thought m-maybe, instead of making toys for th-them and getting you s-stressed out, you could afford time to visit a couple and that'd be their Christmas presents for the year. Wouldn't that be—"

Santa grasped the crab's baggy elf clothes and lifted him several feet off the ground, a haunting grimace upon his features. "You know that won't work, Krabmeat," he said with a low growl. He stood up abruptly and thrust the elf on the ground. His voice grew louder with every sentence, "You _know_ it won't work! No kid can see my face; no kid is allowed to. I never come down chimneys and I don't have the happy eyes and the white beard they need to see!"

"Couldn't you just shave your moustache and wear a fake beard for one night?" Krabmeat offered before almost being stomped on by the fuming madman.

"It's not that easy!" Saint 'Nik exclaimed, rubbing his fingers against his temples, "And I thought you were one of the smarter ones. I don't even have any reindeer either. Face it, if they saw me, they would get upset, then you know what happens if they get upset..."

"Yes, sir. I'm sorry for suggesting it," the robotic crab answered, a low whir signifying his shame.

"You should be," the red-coated man said coldly, "We'll just need to continue making toys and doing what I've suggested all along. It's the easiest way." With his worsened mood, he felt tempted to kick Krabmeat on the little robot's way out, but he resisted, realizing the little guy was only trying to help. "Go on," he urged with only a bit of irritation and sat down, allowing the elf to leave.

Sighing loudly, Santa cradled his head in his hands and massaged his forehead. It always led to the kids being upset some way or another. He had been doing this thing for years—and didn't intend to stop because of Gerald's wishes—but the world's incessant demanding and their beliefs he had to uphold were starting to get downright infuriating. If they thought he had to deliver presents to all the nice children of the world in one night, so it was. If they believed he was to live in the North Pole, so it was.

They believed he had magic, but he couldn't have that obviously...

He felt a growl escape his lips, and he wiped his mouth with the tablecloth to remove the eggnog from his auburn facial hair.

It wasn't the beliefs that were giving him power (like some annoying holiday movies always said). It felt the exact opposite, to be honest.

Because he had to keep making mediocre toys like Barbies or Hot Wheels, he couldn't afford time to stretch his horizons and invent new kinds of games for them to get. Saint 'Nik could very well do it with his intellect and all and was far more than capable of handling the world's expectations of him. Everything was pressed for time this year like past years, but this time, it felt different.

The fat man's grip on the decorated mug intensified.

He was starting to despise what he was doing, this Christmas thing, especially since the events of last year...

"Boss?"

Santa glanced up from his intense irritation to see one of the pastry chef elves look curiously but warily at him.

"Shouldn't you be, uh...checking things out? It's been half an hour since you came in here."

Had it really been that long of a time?

Hastily rising from his seat, he uttered a quick thanks instead of a seething remark due to his disbelief at the time gone by. He left the kitchen promptly into the Present Hall, bracing himself for the boisterous noises of his machines and meeting just that in the large expanse of a hall. If he had time after Christmas, he would certainly figure out a way to make them more quiet.

With a sudden desire to make his examination of the elves quick, Santa hurriedly weaved through the never-ending assembly line, which overall was a funny sight to see. He started at the beginning of the production line because he could and could find no reason to do it any different and went on from there. "Average", "not bad", and "imbecile!" were basically his responses boiled down to three simple phrases.

Relief began to wash over him as Saint 'Nik began to reach the end of the assembly line near the gift-wrapping station. Then he could plop back down in his office—"workshop", he meant—which was hopefully cleaned by some elf, and could enjoy gallons of eggnog for the rest of night. The idea was quite appealing in his eyes.

He was about to fire his three classic responses to the last line but stopped abruptly when hearing a noise foreign to his ears (because after all, living in the North Pole for forty plus years would help you with knowing the difference). Santa twirled to the direction and, at the sight, was stunned.

Orbot and Cubot, his two 'loyal' elves, were talking to a blue figure, whose back was to Saint 'Nik. The blue figure had spines that jutted out from the back of his head and back and had nothing on from behind except red shoes and white gloves. Fake reindeer antlers with little bells adorned his head, and he fingered the brown stubs repeatedly. "Do these antlers make my head look big?" his brass voice teased as Orbot and Cubot froze upon seeing their boss. The figure chuckled at this reaction. "Ah, come on, guys, that's the third time you haven't gotten one of my jokes. You know I'm just messing with you!"

It didn't take long for his attention span to shorten, and he spun around. "What cha' guys lookin' at anyway—oh!" His green eyes grew wide with astonishment at the towering fat man before him, but he immediately recovered, a smile flickering upon his muzzle. "Hey, you must be the big man himself! Wow, what an honor to finally meet the man I'll be working for," he said excitedly, extending a hand out to Saint 'Nik.

"Working for...?" Saint 'Nik glanced at Orbot and Cubot, who both looked like they were about to panic. His gaze turned back to the figure, whose pointy ears, long black nose, and spines all pointed for him to be one animal: a hedgehog.

The newcomer pulled back his hand, unfazed by the lack of a handshake. "Well, I heard you had a problem, Mister Claus. A reindeer problem to be exact. Now you don't have anyone to guide your sleigh on Christmas Eve." His grin became wilder and he spread his arms out for maximum effect. "Well, look no further. Sonic the Hedgedeer is here to the rescue!"

Saint 'Nik slammed his hands onto the table. He had a deep sinking feeling that this was why this blue hedgehog was here, but he still was found sputtering."Who? Wh-what? _Why_..."

"No need to fret!" said Sonic, jabbing a thumb to his chest. "While I can't do much flying, I'll get you across any terrain in seconds. On Christmas Eve night, you'll have so much time to spare 'cause you'll finish 'em so fast with me on the team! Am I right, guys?"

While he addressed Orbot and Cubot—who looked none too happy to be addressed at this point in time—the fat man felt so much pent-up anger that he just had to release it.

Quickly, he snatched a snow globe from the assembly line and chucked it at the hedgehog's head.

Sonic turned around, letting the weapon that was intended to shatter against his head hit a nearby elf instead. "So, whaddaya say, Mister Claus? Am I your new Rudolph?" he asked, a businessman-like smirk slowly appearing on his face. "Will this be the new—hey!"

The hedgehog didn't have time to say much else before he was thrown outside in the ongoing blizzard, the front door slammed shut behind him.

Santa now glared at his two minions, his nostrils flaring. "Who. Is. That?" he said, his words coming in rapid, fury-ridden icicles.

Orbot flung out his hands in desperation. "Sir, we can explain—"

"Explain?! Sure, explain how looking for reindeer, which you were supposed to do, led to finding _that_!"

"You mean the hedgehog?" Cubot asked, "He's not a 'that', you know."

Orbot merely shoved his partner out of the way. "We were looking for reindeer out in the North Pole, like you said, but we had terrible luck. It had been nearly ten hours and we were about to call it quits when we ran into him," he said, "I don't know what he's doing out here, but he was wondering the same thing about us."

"We told him about you and how we were elves and your workshop and everything!" Cubot exclaimed, ignoring the fuming look his boss was sporting, "I mean, who knows, he might be our next reindeer. If he has speed like he promises, he'll be a fine replacement."

Sensing they were finished with their explanation, the fat man considered what they said. Clearly the parts about this hedgehog randomly appearing out of nowhere in the North Pole and just so happening to run into his two robots were suspicious enough. He wouldn't know why they would lie to him because the only reason that they would purposefully, Santa thought, was because they wanted to help him. Which was absolutely infuriating.

Saint 'Nik stalked to the front door and yanked it open, revealing the new blue pest, who shot numerous lines of thanks rapidly like a machine gun. "Oh, thank you, sir! I'm so grateful. Were you considering me for the job?"

"Shut it, rodent," the fat man growled in response, keeping the door cracked just enough so Sonic couldn't get through, "Now, tell me, _Sonic_, what are you doing up here?"

Relieved to be asked a question he could answer, Sonic beamed. "Well, isn't the North Pole where you live? I thought I would come to you because you need a little help this Christmas."

He scowled. "How did you know about the reindeer problem? Did Orbot and Cubot tell you?"

"A little birdie told me," the hedgehog said with a indiscreet wink.

Instantly, Santa was puzzled and he turned to his two robots, mouthing one word, at which the elves shrugged in unison. He turned back to Sonic, who looked hopeful. "Get lost."

"Ah, come on!" Sonic cried, "I just want to help, Sanity Clause!"

"I don't need any help. If I managed forty-plus years of this before, I think I can handle another year," he retorted, swinging the door in closer shut, "Goodbye now."

"No! Are you really gonna leave me out here to freeze? I've got no place to go!" the boisterous voice continued.

Santa haggardly sighed. This was getting annoying. "Can't you just run home? Don't you have the _super speed_ to do it?"

"B-but these conditions are terrible out here! My muscles are already cramping up. Then it'll soon be my whole body that'll freeze, and I'll starve, and I'll—"

"Fine!" Saint 'Nik swung open the door, and the hedgehog fell facedown in the Present Hall. "You can stay. By the end of tomorrow, you better leave!"

Sonic immediately jumped to his feet and grasped the man's limp hand, shaking it furiously. "Thank you, Mister Claus, you won't regret it. You're such a generous man and all! I'll be sure to help you so much!"

"Orbot, Cubot, escort him to his _temporary_ living quarters," Santa ordered abruptly, walking toward the exit of the Present Hall. He didn't want to hear any more blathering from this pest tonight; he was simply too tired to deal with it. It was perhaps midnight by now.

Haggardly, he dragged himself down the lengthy hallways as elves worked to and fro. The sinking feeling had grown bad enough that he was starting to think even a mug of eggnog wouldn't cure it this time.

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><p><strong>Now that Sonic's entered the scene; things will get much more interesting from here! Expect chaos and witty remarks in the next six chapters. Thanks for reading!<strong>

**-JD**


	3. Then All The Reindeer Loved Him

Santa drummed his fingers on the very little space left untouched on his main desk. He had been working on a fancy new kind of toy, but he just simply wasn't in the right mindset to finish it. A very important message was he to await. It could arrive any second since he had given his Moto Bugs the task last night. He was pretty confident that they could traverse the blankets of snow quickly, and the alert telling him they completed their objective was the only thing on his mind in the wintry morning.

He even had his two front doors of the workshop slightly cracked open for a messenger.

White light filtered through the windows and lit up the now cleaned-up room. He couldn't really call it sunlight since it was a mostly cloudy sky, but it was a bright enough source for him to not use any artificial materials.

It was a couple more days until the day he would have to put everything together. He didn't really care that much about the presents—not immensely anyway—but just how they would be delivered. He had no worries that it would turn out just fine under his supervision. Basically a veteran, Ivo could handle anything thrown at him.

Except the red orb sailing at him at hundred miles an hour.

"Argh!" he rubbed his round bald head quite angrily, annoyed he didn't have fast enough reflexes to prevent that. However, his anger transformed rapidly to delight upon seeing a red metal orb. "Orbinaut! What does my little messenger have for me today? And how did you get here so fast?"

The floating orb, which usually had four spiky orbs circling around it but luckily not having them today, hesitated. "Well, actually, I was thrown here."

"Hm, must be urgent then," Santa quickly decided, a smile crawling back to his face, "So, is it from the Moto Bugs? What is it?"

"Err...no, it's not. Sonic is wondering if he could come and speak with you."

That bit of news certainly soured his mood. "Really?" he said in a deadpan tone.

"Yep."

"Tell him, 'No, I don't want to see him right now.' Thank you," Santa said simply, grabbing the red orb and thrusting it out his door. He grumbled to himself and let his fingers mess with his experiment. He had no time to talk to Sonic. Keeping a wary eye on the door helped him to avoid Orbinaut, which slammed into the wall furthest from the entrance. "What is it now?"

"Pretty please?"

Saint 'Nik snatched the orb, grimacing at the two eyes. "_No_," he declared, throwing it back out.

It came back in record time. "Pretty please with cherry on top?"

"Didn't you hear what I said, you inane hedgehog? _No_."

He was beginning to expect the red blur flying into his office two seconds after his message. "Come on, don't you want to see my super cool reindeer skills?"

Hearing this coming out of one of his own creations might've been amusing, but at this point in time, it was only grating on his nerves. "I'm busy right now."

Out and back in a matter of milliseconds, bouncing back like a conversation.

"Aren't you always?"

"My point. Get lost."

"So when _can_ I meet you? Christmas is comin' soon, y'know, and I'm _gonna_ help you."

This time, Santa's hold on the messenger elf tightened, and poor Orbinaut's eyes widened in a semblance of pain from the strength. "Stop taking messages from him. Now tell him, 'Never! Go stand out in the cold or something.'"

"Gotcha, boss."

With that, he flung the herald as hard as he could through the narrow slit of his doors. Hopefully, that'll knock the hedgehog out, and he won't have to deal with him for quite some time. After a couple of minutes, he tried to resume his experiment and keep his fiery temper under control. After a few more minutes, he was beginning to believe he was doing a good job.

In a second, an Orbinaut whacked him in the forehead brutally. He swung his head up to meet the panicked messenger with an angry eye. "Tell him to buzz off. I don't care what he has to say. I don't want to hear it."

The Orbinaut seemed confused. "But sir, you want me to tell the Moto Bugs to—"

"I don't care! Tell him to—" Santa paused, perplexed, and then grew wide-eyed, "Wait, the Moto Bugs?"

"Yes, the Moto Bugs have found real reindeer."

The fat man was already to his feet. "Where are they?"

"Just outside. It's snowing pretty hard though and the temperature's pretty low..."

"Thanks, Orbinaut!" he called and swung out his doorway. He ducked just in time for another Orbinaut to whiz past him, probably another message forcibly sent by that irritating hedgehog. Knowing if he went the same direction that messenger went he'd run into Sonic, he decided to take a secret shortcut only he knew.

He really didn't want to talk to that hedgehog again.

Saint 'Nik had weaved through the Present Hall carefully and quietly under the noise just in case that hedgedeer had super hearing as well and, with a flourish, he opened the front doors and stepped outside. "Sweet silver bells, it's frigid!" he cried, pulling the edges of his coat closer to him, "That Orbinaut wasn't lying." Despite the cold, Saint 'Nik discovered another problem, too: he couldn't very well see anything through the dense blizzard. "Just outside the workshop, huh? Well, let's hope he was right about that as well." He shuffled his legs through the thigh-deep snow, which continued to increase as he traveled.

Sometimes he didn't like how genius of a location he picked simply because he had to travel through the difficult conditions himself when needed. His leg knocked into something hard, and he scowled but found the glaring blue eyes of a Moto Bug underneath.

Delight surged through him immediately at the sight.

"Hello, my Moto Bugs! Where are my reindeer?" he asked gleefully, cupping a hand above his eyes to prevent the snow from hindering his vision. Soon enough, he saw them, the tan mammals with majestic antlers jutting out and firm legs holding their furry bodies steadfast in the winter storm.

The best part about them, to Saint 'Nik, was that they didn't talk!

He remembered vaguely the people in Station Square had folklore concerning the reindeer's names. But where was the fun in that? Besides, they probably wouldn't overhear calling out 'on' and their names afterward anyway. He quickly pushed through the snow to meet the first gruff-looking one. "You'll be Alpha!" Then he turned to the next few and started naming them according to his glorious knowledge of a beloved language.

"Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, and..." he smiled at the last one, who held what he thought was a determined look in its eyes, "Omega!"

Because face it: 'Omega' sounded a lot better than the rest of the Greek alphabet. At least, to Santa 'Botnik, that was. Plus that was the last reindeer; he needed some kind of closure to his group of reindeer.

"C'mon, my fellow reindeer, back to the workshop!" The fat man swung back in the general direction of his abode, trudging on his way until he glanced back. Shock hit him instantly when he realized they were going the opposite direction into a larger mound of snow. "H-hey! No, not that way!"

However, when he took one step into the snow, it engulfed his entire his leg, and he was left floundering for a good minute before putting the next foot out and experiencing the same thing.

Yep, this was going to take longer than he thought.

* * *

><p>"C-come on, you big fat furballs. Move!" Saint 'Nik cried, heaving his weight against the reindeer's hind. It must've been two, maybe three, hours as Santa tried to move his new reindeer. He had gotten most of them to travel into an area where there was slightly less snow. It wasn't out of his doing either; they just merely went there because they wanted to.<p>

Omega was the most rebellious one. Santa had soon figured that out when the reindeer broke into a full-on sprint in the opposite direction of his workshop. Luckily, he was able to somewhat herd him. Now he was trying to get him to move, but Omega was acting as stubborn as a mule now, persistently staying in the same spot.

The Moto Bugs merely watched their boss with probing eyes.

Santa heaved and heaved one more time before collapsing into the snow and receiving a good mouthful of it. "Bah! This is hopeless! I can't even get one reindeer to move its bum, and these will be the reindeer that'll have to travel all around the world with me? Practically impossible. Utterly hopeless!" he groaned, rubbing his hands together to maintain warmth. "This is a lost cause. I'm going inside. Moto Bugs—!"

The motorized machines followed him in haste as he got up and scraped the snow off his red pants. A wave of snow was suddenly kicked upon him, and Santa yelped in surprise. He shook as much off as he could and whirled around a few times until his eyes came upon the large, stubborn reindeer.

He knew that Omega was a rebellious one.

* * *

><p>Once Santa got into the workshop, safe and sound from those loopy reindeer, he planned to take cover in his office. He was cold, weary, and annoyed: not a good combination. He would order some eggnog as soon as possible.<p>

"Hey, there you are, Santa, my man!" a voice called raucously across the Present Hall.

Not now.

The blue hedgehog jogged quickly, catching up to the shivering, rosy-cheeked man. "Seems you've already taken a plunge in the cold, huh? Would ya like me to get you a good hot cup of eggnog?" he asked with a smirk.

"Why, yes, that'd be..." Santa stopped, then glared at him, "You're supposed to be gone by the end of today, y'know."

Sonic lifted his hands in recognition. "I remember," he said simply, "Say, can we make a deal, Mister Claus?"

"Deal?"

Oh, boy, this couldn't be good.

"Yeah, something like a wager," the blue hedgehog grinned, seemingly thrilled by his own proposition, "You've got a reindeer course, right? Out in the big snow?" He jabbed a finger out one of the homely windows for emphasis. "If I can go through the course and break the record—'cause there's gotta be a record if there's a course—then you'll let me stay for 'nother night. If I don't break the record, well, I don't stay. Whaddaya say?"

Santa looked upon this grinning blue figure and couldn't believe the words spoken. He thought it was going to be a lose-lose situation for him. "Deal."

"Good," Sonic beamed, "Jus' lemme get your eggnog and then we'll go okay?"

"All right," Saint 'Nik said, a smile beginning to return to his face. He needed a little cheering up anyway.

* * *

><p>Sonic sprung up into the air, staying on the balls of his feet in the cushiony snow. The little bells on his fake antlers jingled harmoniously in rhythm with his jumps in preparation. The blizzard had let up a little bit for the race, much to Saint 'Nik's disappointment, but it still seemed very bothersome for the race.<p>

Basically, the reindeer would have to weave through a tricky slalom, decorated with the holiday spirit, all while going as fast possible and carrying a sack full of wrapped gifts. Then there was a steep downhill, secretly bombarded with fake snow, which Santa hoped would take him by surprise. For Sonic to stay another night, no present was allowed to fall out of his sack, and he would have to beat the record.

And that, Santa thought, was merely impossible, considering the last reindeer's best time.

Orbot and Cubot stood by Saint 'Nik and they were to be the timers for the race, just to keep things fair between opposing parties.

The blue hedgehog continued to stretch as the fat man handled his cup of eggnog.

"How are you doing out there, Sonic? Cramping up from the cold?"

"I'm doing a lot better, thanks for asking," the hedgehog shot back, "Your kindness to me has warmed me up enough not to cramp up, Mister Claus, so I think I'll be good."

A low growl emitted from Saint 'Nik's lips.

"On your mark!" Cubot called, allowing for Sonic to get in a starting position with his gift sack. "Get set! Go!"

The nanosecond the cube-shaped robot exclaimed the word, the racer was off, almost a blue streak in his mad dash.

"Oh, wow, lookit 'im go!" Cubot cried, bouncing in the snow.

Santa grimaced, watching the hedgehog's legs, which almost looked like a blur, pump faster and faster through the waves of snow. He moved gracefully, so that the presents didn't fall out but he moved rapidly. No doubt about it; he was fast.

When he came across the slalom, Sonic shifted through the pegs with easy, his bag full of gifts bouncing merrily behind him. Orbot sprung up and down as the blue hedgehog sped by him at blinding speed and sprayed quite a bit of snow on him and the fat man. "3.4 seconds! I swear he's as fast as-!"

Santa 'Botnik squashed the robot's head to its tiny body. "No. He's not." He then waved a furry crimson arm. "Release the slippery fake snow!"

Cubot, who was standing by the bucket of fake snow, dumped it onto the terrain with no questions asked. Santa grinned, his fingers weaving in and out of his orange moustache. "He'll never see it coming!"

True to his prediction, one cherry red sneaker set upon the icy sleet and Sonic was off-balance, one leg sailing up in the air and arms splayed out, a raucous shout of astonishment leaving his mouth. He would have no time to recover by the time he reached the next Christmas-themed peg. Then, as if to oppose everything Saint 'Nik ever desired, a look of determination flickered back into Sonic's gaze, and instead of being overly-arched backwards, he leaned forward with one leg still in the air, allowing himself to build momentum to switch legs on the liquid snow.

The downhill slide only helped him in gaining speed.

"Truly, what a wonderful comeback! What an amazing, impeccable hero this hedgehog is! He moves on the snow as if he's wearing skates. So smooth, so-"

It took a growl from his fat leader for the robot elf to shut his trap. Santa's cheeks were now fuming red not from merriness, but from unbearable anger. Sonic just finished the course at the bottom of the hill, presents still safely in his sack. After the finish line, he lost his focus and nearly slid into a huge pile of snow. He regained his balance and waved to the fat man, grinning goofily. "Hey, how'd I do? Gimme a grade!"

Sonic barely avoided of what were remnants of a poorly-made ice weapon. " 'S' for Snowball fight?"

The fat man kicked another bout of snow into the air. He didn't have the time nor the energy to deal with this meddlesome troublemaker. "Orbot, what's the time?"

He meant the time of day, but the orb-shaped robot read off his internal timer with great excitement instead. "Ten seconds flat, barely a millisecond faster. It's a new record!"

"Aw, you're kidding me!" Sonic cried, rushing to the two geometric-shaped robots, his bells jingling.

"Nope!" Cubot proclaimed. "Now you get to stay here a whole nother day!"

Cubot and Orbot leaped in glee at this declaration, and, upon noticing this act of celebration, Sonic joined in as well, laughing alongside them and bouncing in unison with them.

Santa stared at the three in disbelief. How long had they all been spending time together? Resentment burned in his mind. Whatever, it was too cold, and he needed to get back to the workshop. He took the short, lonely walk there, reaching the front doors promptly. Finally. He needed to get away.

However, a Moto Bug blocked the way, staring intently at something on the building.

Following his gaze, Saint 'Nik saw imprints of hooves and scratches on the beautiful wood paneling. He flung out his fists. This could only be the work of one reindeer.

"Omega!"

* * *

><p><strong>Heh, wow, I was expecting this to be a short chapter all and all, but I guess it got away from me. Just blame it on the idea of Omega the reindeer popping into my head. XD Oh, and thanks for the reviews, people. Really appreciate the feedback. Hopefully, I'll post more tomorrowlater today. Thanks again!**

**-JD**


	4. You'll Go Down in History

The sunlight was barely in his office when Santa stirred from his quarters. He looked around quite blindly, wondering if he had slept the whole day and it was nighttime again. Alas, that wasn't true. Checking his clock, he knew the chef elves wouldn't be up at this time, and he was dying to get a rousing cup of eggnog.

Guess he had to do it the old-fashioned way.

He hoisted himself from his seat, which he had been passed out on since yesterday when thinking of a new plan. Real reindeer weren't going to work, and Saint 'Nik had quickly ordered his Moto Bugs to herd them back to who-knows-where before Omega could cause any more damage.

The fat man really thought he was going to win with those reindeer.

So last night, he toiled over Plan B, which probably was more realistic and should've been worked on earlier: rockets attached to his sleigh. It was a bit more difficult than just slapping rockets on the hind of his sleigh and sending it off; he had to continuously give the rockets fuel to keep burning and the sleigh was the perfect producer of fuel.

But he'd better watch himself because his famed sleigh was now highly flammable.

He had no doubt that this would beat the hedgehog. Who could be faster than high-powered rockets built by none other than the genius himself? _Whatever_, he thought as he entered the kitchen gruffly, _I'll just talk to that hedgehog about it later in the day_.

"Hey, you're awake! Didn't know you'd be up at this hour. Want some eggnog?"

He froze at the words.

Slowly, Santa looked up in horror at Sonic, who had a cup of eggnog in his hand as well. That hedgehog—! Stealing his time alone no doubt. He probably knew that the fat man liked eggnog and most likely camped out here until he came in here.

It was a clever ambush, he had to admit.

"Why are you...?

"Awake?" Sonic shrugged, "Eh, I'm a morning person."

The blue hedgehog offered a seat, and Santa took that and a drink. "Being a morning person isn't good, considering if you have to stay up late to deliver presents on Christmas Eve," he countered, making sure he said 'if.'

"Can't I be both? Hedgehogs are naturally nocturnal, y'know. And I thought you knew everything." The conversation ricocheted back as quickly as Santa blinked.

Sonic chuckled at the inability to counter and sipped his eggnog. His eyes grew wide, and he pulled it away in a split second. "Hot, hot!"

The fat man observed the hedgehog as he wiped his tongue against a napkin decorated with little mistletoes. Saint 'Nik was used to being the wittiest one with his robots trying to pick up on his humor and indignant orders. Now Sonic was pulling jokes on him that sometimes took him a minute after to get. It was weird to be chatting with something so...alive.

Of course, he had chatted with something alive before, and it wasn't very long ago...but this felt different.

Sonic put his eggnog down, a moustache appearing on his muzzle. "Oh, hey, I've got facial hair like you."

Santa 'Botnik snorted and stood up. "Please, don't insult me with that fake, protein-made stain on your face. This," he stroked his orange moustache, "is quality work."

The blue hedgehog cocked his head to one side. "So why don't you ever let the kids of the world see that beauty, huh?"

Stopping in his tracks, the fat man gazed at Sonic. "Are you trying to get me to break the rules?"

"There are rules?" Sonic asked all too innocently.

He knew he had gone too far. "Er, get out of here. I don't need to explain myself."

"C'mon, Mister Claus, can't we have a normal little chat, mano gordo a, uh...hedgedeer?"

Santa hesitated. "Well, there is one thing I need to ask you," he said slowly.

At that statement, the hedgehog brightened. "Ask away!"

"Where did you hear about me? Why did you come here? And don't give me the 'I knew you needed help' excuse," he edged in before Sonic could say a word.

This stopped the hedgedeer for a second. He was actually visibly mulling over on something before he opened his big fat trap. A true Christmas miracle. "Well, I—" he stopped that sentence, and then a new idea seemed to enter his head. "You know what, I'll tell you. If you let me be the reindeer that guides your sleigh on Christmas Eve."

It was all looking good before he said that. "What?! That's-that's—"

"Brilliant, well-thought out? Thanks," Sonic teased, "But seriously, you need some sort of assurance that you'll deliver all the presents to the world before Christmas. That's where I come in. Admit it; you need help."

"Bah, I can do these things myself! I don't need your help," Saint 'Nik retorted, heading to the kitchen doors, "In fact, I have rockets already built to do the guiding for me. Admit it; you can't be faster than that!"

"Oh, really? How 'bout a race then? To see which one is faster?"

Santa flung his arms out exaggeratingly. "Deal!" he cried, swinging out the doors and exiting. He stomped down the hallways until his foot met a two foot robot. He watched it crash into the wall when he got an idea. "Hey, you!" Picking up his minion, the fat man smiled at it, "Find the location of the last reindeer. When you find it, report back to me as soon as possible."

If this blue reindeer wasn't going to give him the answers, Ivo most certainly would find them out himself.

* * *

><p>"Rargh! I hate snow!" Saint 'Nik bellowed, tightening his belt. Why did he let himself be out in this dreadful weather so often anyway? Oh, yeah, because of that pain-in-the-neck hedgehog!<p>

"Then why'd you choose this location for your workshop...?" Cubot trailed, puzzled at his boss's behavior.

Growling at the cube-shaped elf, he muttered, "Don't even ask that question."

Orbot leaped up excitedly in the ever-increasing snow. "Isn't this exciting? Another race! I can't wait to see Sonic cross the finish line first—" he froze, noticing the seething fat man's sharpened glare. "I-I mean, it's going to be close!"

Santa smacked a gloved hand against his forehead as he climbed into his sleigh. Was it really going to be such a blowout? He believed not, especially with his wonderfully-made rockets and sleek sleigh. His transport was decorated in the usual holiday colors, gold, red, and a hint of white, but this sleigh was the most aerodynamic he could possibly make it while its still being a sleigh.

Sometimes Christmas Eves past were cut down to the wire because of a poorly-timed eggnog break, and so he needed as much speed and balance as possible.

His steel rockets gleamed in the afternoon light at the end of his sleigh. He made sure Orbot stayed far away from the end of it to prevent him from being burned up (though a small part of him wanted him to be, in the current situation). The rockets were his craftsmanship after all; the fuel would certainly leave long trails of flame at the back of his sleigh.

"Say, Mister Claus, are you ready?" Sonic called, prancing up and down in his stretches with his sleigh's reins attached to him. Santa believed he deserved the real sleigh, and Sonic deserved the makeshift one, which was slightly heavier than the other one. One could say it wasn't fair, but was life ever really fair?

"Ready to take you down, that's what," Saint 'Nik shot back, getting comfortable in his vehicle.

The goal? The first one to get across the expanse of colossal, icy mountains would win. Cubot already made his way over there, so it signaled that this would be a very short course as well.

Sonic raised his head back and laughed. "Oh, we'll see about that," he said with a grin, his unwavering green eyes refocusing on the mountainous path before him.

"Ready, set, go!" Orbot called, waving his arms as if he were waving two flags.

At that moment, Santa pressed the button on his sleigh, and the fuel was released to combust in the air by the rockets. He was sent forward faster than he thought, and he was soon flying above the mountain peaks. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" he said between triumphant laughs.

The mountains were near to impossible to navigate oneself through. Forget hauling a giant sleigh, it would be a miracle for Sonic to get out of there in one piece.

He was eager to reach the finish line until he saw out of the corner of his eye a blur of some kind. Upon closer inspection, without steering his sleigh the wrong way, he sputtered in disbelief at the hedgehog jumping from peak to peak. His makeshift sleigh seemed perfectly fine, not damaged at all nor flinging wildly as he did this. It was like some perfect holiday movie.

This wasn't a Christmas miracle; this had to be some sort of cheating!

Santa put more and more pressure on the button, desperate to get an inch ahead of the hedgehog. But Sonic seemed to get farther and farther away. How he could haul a heavier sleigh and haul it faster than his rockets could, the fat man would never know.

Sonic disappeared over the last line of mountains as Santa's sleigh followed right behind him. But he knew who won anyway.

"You were faster than _rockets_, Sonic! _Rockets_!" Cubot exclaimed on the hedgehog's shoulder.

Merely shrugging, the hedgehog turned to the fat man, who was grumbling over his new inventions. "Yeah, but those rockets were some pretty tough competition. To build anything that could go that fast is certainly a huge feat," he said, looking over with a smile.

Santa kicked one of his rockets angrily. "Don't flatter me. You wouldn't be doing that if you lost, so don't be like that at all."

"Aw, c'mon, Mister Claus, I'm being as genuine as I possibly can. Why don't you wanna be—"

"Says the hedgehog who refuses to tell me how and why he came here," Saint 'Nik said bluntly. He then turned away and began walking back. "I've got some business to handle. After all, it's the Eve of Christmas Eve and Santa needs to tie all the loose ends before the big day."

The sarcastic tone dwelt in his voice in the last few sentences as he left the three standing in the snow. He wished they would all not move and freeze in the blizzard, but he knew they weren't as dumb as rocks. Or real reindeer, for that matter.

Once he reached the workshop—which was quite a long stroll, mind you—he was huffing and puffing, cheeks as red as his suit. With more force than needed, Saint 'Nik pushed the front doors open and they slammed into the walls, causing all the elves to look up from their work and stare at him.

"Get back to work!" he bellowed, his voice scaring them back to toiling furiously, "It's the Eve of Christmas Eve, and I don't want any more distractions, interruptions, or pathetic miscommunications." He nearly tripped over a tiny two foot robot elf. "What do you want?!"

"The last reindeer's location. He is found."

Well, this was certainly a turn of events.

Santa found himself re-buttoning his coat and putting on his red and white hat. "Well, tell me the coordinates, little one. Now."

For sure, he'd get some answers.

* * *

><p>Part of Saint 'Nik liked to think right about now that his minion gave him the wrong directions or something. He never liked traveling to populated areas, especially people that knew of him. Of course, he could've gone incognito, but he didn't want to look like a complete fool either.<p>

This huge mall, where his last reindeer supposedly was residing, was usually packed with people, and it was one of the largest malls in the world.

Luckily, he needn't worry about the crowds since it was way past closing time—it was now around midnight, to be exact—so he would have to blunder around the large, empty shopping center lit only by the moonlight shining through the glass windows above.

He was thankful that he was given the exact location in this mall, or he'd been wandering around here forever. Santa tiptoed silently, still afraid that there might be some mall cop to bust him for breaking curfew, until he came across the fourth floor's escalators.

Finally.

Timidly but growing more confident, he approached them and quietly headed to the back of one to see a tall, gaping shadow trailing behind. It was so murky black that he felt he had the wrong escalator, but he knew this reindeer was great at blending in with the dark.

"Shadow?"

Deathly silence hung in the air for five, ten, fifteen seconds. Then the shadows under the escalator morphed until he could see black spines jutting out like knives in the moonlight. Red eyes flickered into being in the yawning darkness, and a familiar scathing, low voice scratched on Santa's ears.

"It's you."

"Yes, it's me. It's very good to see you again, Shadow the Hedgehog. Tell me, why are you at the mall when it's clearly past closing time?" he asked, feeling like that kind idiot Sonic.

"I don't need to explain anything to you!" Shadow burst; then his temper waned. "Why are you here? I thought I told you to never see me again."

Santa wondered to himself why the mall cops wouldn't kick him out at this late of night. Then he figured how scary Shadow must look in the dark and his serious anger problems and he couldn't blame them for leaving him here.

"Coming to visit you, of course," Saint 'Nik said quickly, "Looking for any gifts in this mall?"

His red eyes looked distant. "Everything in this place is useless, superficial. There is no gift that could restore what I've lost." His red eyes flickered to him, fire dancing in them dangerously. "Nothing could ever restore what I've lost because of you."

The calmness in his last reindeer's voice was starting to scare him; it was reminding him of the last time Shadow and he talked. He needed to get to the point quickly. "Well, Shadow, since you left me at such a terrible time, I have come across another reindeer. A hedgehog ironically."

Shadow's crimson gaze fell to the ground. "Is that so?"

"Yep! And he even beat your record time in the reindeer course," Santa boasted, already feeling a surge of pride flow through him at that jab. "It's strange that he's a super fast hedgehog just like yourself. Maybe you know each other. Perhaps when you left, you recommended the job to him, and perha—"

"You're suggesting that I brought him to you?!" Shadow roared unexpectedly, causing Santa to fall backwards and hit the wall. The black hedgehog approached him venomously. "Why would I _ever_ help you, old man? You turn giving gifts to kids into a selfish thing centered around you. You always refused help, thinking you could do it your blasted self." Shadow was out of the darkness and into the moonlight, exposing his crimson streaks that matched the blood red rage of his eyes. "And that's what killed her, blast it! You killed her with your pride, with your selfish pigheadedness, with your inability to accept her help. She was only trying to help!"

Santa fought the fists that were attempting to get a crack on his skull; it was slowly proving unsuccessful. "I'm sorry. I couldn't get there in time, Shadow! I'm just a man like everyone else—!"

Shadow relinquished his fists and backed into the shadows a little more. "So now you admit it," he said darkly, "Listen, this new reindeer, this new 'Rudolph' will figure that out soon, that you're nothing like what he's been told. I swear it. You're going to think that you can do everything yourself, and it's going to cost you." He melded back in the shadows with the last words, "I hope it does, old man."

Saint 'Nik lay there, paralyzed with numbing fear, as he slowly tried to get his heart rate back to normal from seeing those rage-filled blood red eyes again. He'd prove him wrong; the past was in the past after all. It was just a mistake he made and he learned from it. The fat man pushed himself to his black boots and stared down the darkness, not intimidated any more. "I'm sorry you're this way, Shadow. Who knew you relied so much on my cousin?"

Shadow said nothing more, and, knowing their spat was over, Santa walked away from the escalator with a sickening feeling. Revisiting the past never felt good.

* * *

><p><strong>There you go, some hints of darkness to it! We're at the halfway point through this story, so I'd like to thank everyone again for their feedback. Hopefully, I can post another chapter today, so be on the look out for that. Thanks again!<strong>

**-JD**


	5. With Your Nose So Bright

Santa sat hunched over in his seat, his eyes staring at the swirling tan liquid in his mug. He had how much of this? Probably eighty-something cups of it and he was still having trouble forgetting. Visions of Shadow's venomous red eyes last night still haunted his thoughts. He had remembered just a year ago the hedgehog being so much nicer.

But he could see all the signs of rebellion displayed throughout the hedgehog in years past. He remembered the small spats that they would sometimes have—not nearly as friendly and gung-ho as with Sonic—and it would usually end up with Shadow huffing away and Saint 'Nik scratching his head.

He remembered specific disputes in even his own office.

_"Can't I have at least one picture of her?" Shadow protested, pacing back and forth as his boss shook his head._

_ "No, no, no, Shadow. You know that's against the rules."_

_ The black hedgehog flung his arms out flamboyantly. "Forget the rules! Do you really think the world's going to come across the picture that I would safeguard and think, 'That must be the cousin of Kris Kringle. She doesn't look anything like we thought she would'?"_

_ "You can never be too careful."_

Granted, Shadow was never a stickler to any kind of rules; Ivo had known that the day Gerald introduced the hedgehog to him. But the particular behavior Shadow would display whenever he challenged these rules was wholly influenced by Ivo's cousin, the granddaughter of Gerald Robotnik. Maria was her name.

She was younger and much prettier than Ivo at the time. In fact, she was said to be kinder than Ivo as well because she was the sole inspiration for Gerald to start the whole 'giving gifts' thing. However, Maria didn't have much of a strong immune system because she would constantly catch diseases and lie ill for several days. Even the common cold was fatal to her if she had it long enough. From this suffering, she wanted all the children of the world less unfortunate than her to be blessed with gifts. She wanted them to know that someone cared about them while she herself lay in a bed, suffering terrible illnesses.

Maria said she was lucky to be surrounded by people who loved her, and her heart broke when kids like her could be suffering the same thing without family or loved ones. Christmas was a time of showing love, Ivo remembered her saying.

However, when he took the mantle of Santa Claus, she began to question all that was happening in the day—these new rules society had set upon them. She would ask the question 'why' many times when Ivo explained to her what he had to do. Sometimes he didn't know the answers to the questions. But since Gerald had told him to follow the rules, he did it with no questions asked.

But she didn't. And her curious behavior had then transferred over to Shadow's, only in a much more intimidating way.

Irate remarks from yesterday kept flying back in Saint 'Nik's mind, tangling with the memories of last year.

She was sick again. Pretty sick, Ivo remembered. He worried that she had the flu. Shadow was worried as well, crouched at her bedside, looking for the occasional robot elf to order around at her convenience.

It was the night of Christmas Eve.

He had approached Shadow, urging him to get along since he was the only one that could pull the sleigh fast enough to deliver all the presents 'round the world. The black hedgehog seemed divided at what to do, but he was then interrupted by Maria, who declared that she wanted to go. Both stared at her in disbelief. She pleaded to come with so she could help out.

But Ivo had refused; she would only get in the way. They should leave her in the robots' care. Shadow had seemed against leaving her at the North Pole and argued that she come with, so that they could keep an eye on her. Ivo promised that she'd be fine to force the hedgehog to agree to leave her.

But he was wrong. Oh, so very wrong.

When the night of delivering Christmas presents was nearly over, Santa had got an urgent call from Orbot. Maria was dying. She needed help. Both fat man and hedgedeer had rushed over to the North Pole as quickly as possible, but they were too late.

The image of the frail female body on the sterile, white bed and the sound of Shadow's bellowing her name stayed frozen in his mind. Then Santa recalled the black hedgehog's turn of the head towards him, the red eyes glaring at him, the realization striking through the flecks of crimson.

It had been Ivo's fault.

"Gah!" Saint 'Nik cried, stumbling to his feet, "I was only trying to help, blast it!"

_ "You always refused help, thinking you could do it your blasted self. She was only trying to help!"_

_ "She was only trying to help!"_

He broke out into the hallway, shaking his head furiously. He knew what he had to do. Christmas Eve was today, and he needed a reindeer. He had to be logical and get over himself for just a second. Surely, that was what Shadow was talking about!

Saint 'Nik barreled down the halls, receiving concerned looks from his elves at the strange behavior, but he didn't bother with chastising them. Entering the Present Hall as fast as possible, he scanned the area in a swift manner. It didn't take long for him to identify the blue hedgehog towering above the rest of the tiny robots in the wrapping station.

"Hedgehog!" he hollered, toddling over to the hedgedeer, already out of breath from his five second sprint. His shout got Sonic's attention, as his pointy ears perked up and his eyes shined with interest. Once Santa reached him, he planted his hands on his knees in exhaustion. "I need to speak with you about something. In private."

Sonic glanced at Orbot and Cubot, who so happened to be listening in on this request. "Sure. Can these guys come with?" he asked, motioning at the two elves behind him.

Normally, his kindness towards his minion would bother Saint 'Nik, but right now he was on a mission. "That's fine. Now, get going; it's urgent," he prodded, herding them outside the public toy-making assembly line. Once they got to a quiet, pretty desolate hallway, Sonic tapped his foot in a polite manner of impatience.

"So, uh, what's this about, Mister Claus?"

Santa plastered on a toothy smile and spread his arms out wide. "Congrats, hedgehog! I've chosen you to be my reindeer for tonight's present-delivering. You along with me will be the reason children around the world receive eternal happiness. What an honor!"

"There really wasn't that much competition for the spot anyway," Orbot mumbled, almost receiving a glare from his boss.

No, Santa had to be happy.

"So, what do you say?" Saint 'Nik was expecting some sort of innocent astonishment from the blue hedgehog or some kind of disbelief. At least a smile or something. However, Sonic looked anything but that, his eyes aimed at the ground. He hated asking this question, but this time, it felt needed. "...What's wrong?"

The blue hedgehog raised his hands, a guilty, pained expression upon his face. His words came out slower than usual as if it hurt him to admit it. "Look, I haven't been totally honest with ya, Mister Claus. And a deal's a deal; I'll tell you how I got here and why."

Saint 'Nik leaned back, his eyebrows arched. This might be interesting.

Sonic looked away and sighed, his ears drooping. "Truth be told...I didn't come here to help you. This actually wasn't for me at all but for a little guy in Station Square. His name's Tails and he's a two-tailed fox." He walked abnormally slow, his emerald eyes flickering in uncharacteristic sadness. "He's an orphan out on the streets. When I first saw him, I felt sorry for him and offered a place in my home. But the weird thing was was that he refused; he said that he didn't deserve it and he wanted to earn his living."

Offering a helpless smile at Saint 'Nik, he continued, "I thought that was completely insane—that is completely insane, am I right? He said he wanted to see Santa for himself, to see the man who kept giving and ask him why he did it. Y'see, Tails isn't like any other kid. And while his logic is completely jacked up...it made me feel guilty."

Sonic shook his head and ran his hand through his spines, jarring the fake antlers a little bit in this time of strange admittance. Santa observed his mannerisms as he spoke and reflected on his thoughts while doing so.

"I mean, all my life I was a privileged hog who had everything handed to him. I didn't do much to...earn anything. And here this orphan was talking about he was going to do something big, something fantastic...and he's living out on the streets, disadvantaged. Nothing I could do would suffice in showing Tails that it was okay to accept things."

A look of familiar determination flickered back into the hedgehog's eyes, and he turned to Orbot and Cubot for inspiration. "That's why I got up off my bum. That's why I wanted to do something crazy. That's why I thought, 'Hey, why not go to the North Pole and tell Santa himself about my predicament?' 'Course, I knew it wouldn't be that easy, people saying you don't exist and your place nearly hidden from the entire world and you being a busy man and all. I found that you were in need of a reindeer, luckily coming across your two robot elves here, and—bam!—" he clapped his hands together, "I could weasel myself in."

Saint 'Nik looked down at him through his navy blue spectacles. "So you were only using me, eh, you naughty hedgehog?" he merely said at the oddly long narrative.

He only meant it as teasing, but the blue hedgehog shoved a hand through his tangled spines, looking more and more restless by the second. "I'm sorry I lied to you, Mister Claus. I wasn't really sure if you even existed or not or how you would be like if I actually met. I mean, I knew you'd be great...but not this great," he said, glancing at Orbot and Cubot, "I feel guilty 'bout keeping this from you, and I know you don't normally show your face to anyone outside the North Pole...but please, this Christmas Eve...can we visit Tails? You and me? So that he can see who you are? I'm worried he'll be sick and all in the cold weather, and I don't want to not visit him. Please, can we?"

Now Sonic was intent, giving him the most innocent emerald green stare he possibly could. The ol' hedgedeer hog eyes. Usually, Santa 'Botnik would feel a sickening feeling whenever breaking the rules was mentioned, but oddly, he didn't feel it at all. If this was to get Sonic to be his reindeer...

"I promise we'll visit him, and he'll be perfectly fine in the cold weather. I mean, if he was living here, that would be a different case, but in Station Square? We'll visit that place soon, don't worry," Saint 'Nik assured, watching the hope and relief glitter back into the hedgehog's eyes.

"Thanks so much, Mister Claus. You won't regret having me on the team," he said with a beaming smile.

Saint 'Nik nodded at that as Orbot and Cubot gave him approving glances. Hopefully, he wouldn't regret it.

* * *

><p>This was it. The night of Christmas Eve was upon them, and every boy and girl would be asleep by now, just waiting for him to come by their houses and drop in their gifts for Christmas morn. This would typically be another dull year for Saint 'Nik but not so. He'd like to blame that blue hedgehog jumping up and down by his sleigh for giving him new jitters about this year in particular.<p>

Sonic continued to stretch and prep with a large goofy grin stretching from left to right on his muzzle. He certainly seemed better since spilling his guts hours before. Santa turned to his two loyal elves. "Now, Orbot, Cubot, keep these communicators on just in case we need to contact you for help. I'll be reporting our progress to you, and you keep watch of the time and tell us where we need to go next before the sunrise of that part of the world. Just like the last few years. Got it?"

"Got it," the geometric robots chorused.

"You probably won't even need to worry 'cause this seems to be another calm year. I'll see you in a couple of hours," Santa called, climbing into his sleigh.

Toys all built on time? Check. All gifts wrapped and in the sack safely stuffed to the brim in his sleigh? Check. All buttoned up? Check.

"Hey, Mister Claus, I'm ready!" the blue hedgehog hollered from the reins, the bells on his fake antlers ringing and jingling with his jittery bounces.

Annoying hedgedeer? Check.

"Good luck, Sonic!" Cubot called, obtaining a smile from the hedgehog in return.

Staring out into the abyss of the blizzard-y night, a feeling of exhilaration surged through him. It was a brand new year, different from the last one. He was going to do it right this year. Santa got comfortable in his transport and, with a thumbs-up to Sonic, felt the sleigh rocket off with him. He turned his head back to see his workshop grow smaller and smaller.

Then he turned to face the little snowflakes hitting his nose and the blur of this night run.

Saint 'Nik chuckled. "Ho, ho, ho!"

His Santa laugh? Check.

Now everything was underway.

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><p><strong>So, uh, heh, this probably won't be finished before Christmas. Granted, there're only three chapters left, but I don't think I'll be posting any more today (<em>maybe <em>the sixth chapter tonight) because of plans with friends and family. Or tomorrow because, well, you know. XD I'd love to hear what you think of these recent chapters, too. Were they rushed? Boring? I'd love to hear your feedback on it. Well, thanks again. Merry Christmas and happy holidays, everyone!**

**-JD**


	6. Won't You--

**So, this is February. Heh, kind of late for Christmas, huh? Well, no doubt about it; I'm going to finish this. Since I'm updating this on the exact day I joined FFN, consider this the celebration of being on here for one year. Thanks for all the support; I love you all! :D**

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><p>"Dashing through the snow, on a hedgedeer open sleigh, over the fields we go, laughing all the way—" Saint 'Nik slammed a gloved hand on the sleigh, causing the hedgehog to look back in his run. "Aw, c'mon, you're supposed to say 'Ho, ho, ho'!"<p>

"I don't care if you're guiding the sleigh tonight, but I am _not_ singing carols with you, hedgehog."

Sonic shrugged, a helpless grin on his face. "Jus' wanted to get you in the Christmas spirit."

Ignoring the annoying ice pelting his moustache, the fat man waved a hand. "Do you know how absurd that just sounded? Now turn around before you crash into a glacier. We're supposed to have reached the first town by now!"

The blue spikes at the back of his head now faced Santa once again, tilted slightly in nonchalance. "I got it, I got it. I was in cruise mode for a while there."

"Well, stop running in cruise mode then!"

That seemed to be the trick because the sleigh picked up speed instantly. Santa had to make sure the presents didn't fly out at the sudden burst of velocity. Snow sprayed from Sonic's shoes, flecks of ice decorating the gift wrap more and more.

Foggy air escaped Santa's lips, blending with the whipping wind. The way he was chilled to the bone made him decide it was at least at zero degrees or below. They were still in the North portion of the world and looking to cross into the Northeastern continents to deliver presents to the small, sparse villages. Then they would work their way down through the eastern part of the world because the sun rose there first.

Freezing gusts of flurrying wind finally got to the red-clothed man, and he pulled his coat in tighter to his round belly. He hoped to be out of this weather soon. How Sonic could function in this weather with only reindeer antlers and shoes and gloves to match was something he would never know. Didn't hedgehogs hibernate?

Sometimes Saint 'Nik wished he was a hibernating animal.

Finally, they reached the first village after passing over a whole body of water, over which Sonic was less than reluctant to cross. Each tiny house had a chimney to boot. As Santa heaved himself up the house (he didn't really want Sonic to run the whole sleigh up the little structure, lest they be discovered), Sonic glanced at the homely little chimney and then back at the fat man. "How are you going to fit in there?" he asked casually, a hint of amusement in his voice.

Saint 'Nik narrowed his eyes. "My reindeer doesn't fly and my elves are only robots, not a mythical race. Do you really think I would be able to get in that small of a space? You're going to do that."

The hedgehog shrugged. "Sure, give all the work to your newest employee. Let him do everything," he retorted, albeit with a teasing tone. However, when in a second, all the presents had disappeared and Sonic was fixing his gloves beside Santa. "Seriously, if I'm going to do this all night, why do you even come along?"

"So you won't do anything stupid, that's what," he grumbled while he shoved a batch of presents into Sonic's arms, "Now finish up this village."

With an exaggerated groan and 'Okay', the blue blur weaved through each and every building's chimney, making sure every present was delivered to the right kid. After that, they went on ahead to the next local village and the next and the next, doing the same thing, until Santa called out, "We're running low on presents, hog!"

"So what am I supposed to do now?" Sonic asked, immediately at his side.

"Go get more. I'll be timing you," Santa replied bluntly, holding up his arm and tapping it.

The hedgehog saluted goofily. "Rightio, Mister Claus!"

And he was gone. It would probably be a few seconds before he came back with more. Santa whistled softly and brushed his gloved hands against the sleigh. They were making substantial progress so far. After this village, they'd be in the more populated areas, and if Sonic could manage those, they'd really be booking it.

If they kept this up, it would be the best Christmas Eve by far.

"Got those gifts, Mister Claus!" Sonic suddenly appeared, overwhelmed by the amount of presents in his arms.

"Good, let's get going then!"

* * *

><p>Granted, Sonic was very excited from this new job and the jitters that proceeded it. But he was probably jumpier about meeting his little fox friend. To be honest, the thought of showing who he really was to a kid and wondering what his reaction would be stressed Santa out. As they jumped from city to village to town to suburb at a rapid pace, he wished to put it off as far back as possible, hopefully never encountering the fox at all.<p>

But, as if to go against everything he hoped for, the hedgedeer began to pester him about it. "So...when are we seeing Tails, Mister Claus? I mean, I'm sorry, we have a route to follow, but I was just wondering. Please forgive me for annoying you." He wasn't exactly _pestering_, but he was sure persistently asking about it in such a roundabout way that it was more annoying to the fat man than blatant begging.

To answer this question, he looked at his route. "Actually, hedgehog, we're going straight here."

His reindeer antlers perked up along with his pointy ears. "For real? Aw, that's so awesome! I can't wait to see the look on Tails' face when he sees your sleigh and all the presents come flying into Station Square!" Sonic cheered, grinning now like a maniac.

At that moment atop another building delivering presents, Santa heard his walkie-talkie bleeped. He grudgingly pulled it out and growled a "Yes?"

Orbot's voice came in quite worriedly. "You two are heading to Station Square?"

Talk about good timing.

"Yes, what is this about?"

"Well, I advise you to watch yourselves there. At this time, they're having their annual Christmas Eve parade. I'm not sure how long it lasts, as it always seems to end at a random time, but if you're heading over there, you should be careful not to get caught."

The realization hit him like a holiday sleigh. How could he forget about the Christmas Eve parade? Saint 'Nik remembered in years past the boisterous celebration, the flashy costumes, the giant float that had a rotund stereotype of him waving to the kiddies and adults who had a little too much. Last time he tried to go through there, it was a nightmare.

...Well, he didn't get caught, but he lost two cups of eggnog. Two cups!

"To Station Square we go, right, Mister Claus?" asked cheerily the blue hedgehog next to him. His voice was filled with anticipation. "Am I right or am I right?" His grin would've been contagious if Santa wasn't freaking out.

"Well, actually," the fat man drawled, "We'll be taking a little detour..."

Sonic's smile immediately dropped and worry inhabited his holly green eyes. "What's wrong? Something in the way?"

Saint 'Nik hesitated. That hedgedeer wouldn't understand; he actually encouraged 'showing the whole world who the real Santa is.' But he couldn't let that happen. "A winter storm" was what instantly came to mind. "A horrifically awful one at that. Orbot warned me about it just in time," Santa weighed his words carefully, pulling his belt tighter, "We'll have time to get there before the sun rises, obviously, but it won't be until much later. Is that...okay?"

He watched his reindeer, a flicker of fear in the fat man for a second, until Sonic grinned and shook his head. "Nah, 'course that's okay, Mister Claus! Why wouldn't I say that's okay? As long as we make a stop to see my lil' buddy, it's all good."

Strange relief hung in Santa's shoulders, and he sighed, tossing another present down the chimney. "It's best to continue south to deliver the most presents in the least amount of time then because of that."

"Ah, gotcha," Sonic flashed a thumbs-up as well as a smirk, "Let's get goin' then! The sooner we get this done, the better!"

* * *

><p>The places they went to ranged from colossal to tiny and from hot to cold (though in the warmer spots, Santa tended to linger longer before heading off). Through the hours, Saint 'Nik found that Sonic was more than just reluctant than to cross over lakes, seas, and oceans.<p>

"You're fast enough to not even go underneath the water, for crying out loud! How could you be scared of it?" the fat man blustered, flinging his arms at the hedgehog when he absolutely refused to traverse over this ocean to the next continent.

"I've been holding my weight and the sleigh's weight for more than just a few hours. What if I get so fatigued hauling it that I don't run fast enough and drown myself?" the hedgedeer retorted, staring down the half-frozen water.

Santa 'Botnik paced back and forth as he tried not to get too frustrated with his partner's obstinacy. Surely, Shadow didn't have hydrophobia like this hedgehog, did he? He didn't remember having these kinds of problems with his last reindeer.

"Tell you what, Mister Claus, let's make a deal," Sonic said promptly, turning his green eyes to him, "I'll cross this ocean and deliver presents to wherever we'll be. But right after that, we're heading straight for Station Square despite the winter storm there. Deal?"

This hedgehog sure liked to make deals that he didn't want to agree to.

The images of Station Square's wild Christmas Eve parade plagued his mind, and the time at Station Square—ten o'clock—seemed too early to end the celebration. "No, I don't want to get stuck in a blizzard and have to go into overdrive to deliver presents to everyone. We'll just go around and bring presents to the rest of the places along this coast until you have the courage to go across the ocean," he said brusquely and that was that.

Sonic looked a bit unhappy at this, but he nodded. "All right, Mister Claus, whatever you say." He raised a pointer finger, as if chastising him. "As long as we get to see Tails—!"

"Yes, we will see Tails," Santa assured, "We will, I'm sure."

They then visited a few more places with great efficiency. Saint 'Nik was pleasantly surprised at how the hedgehog dealt with being denied; he was back to his usual merry self after a couple of stops. In fact, Sonic even started poking fun at all the ridiculous beliefs and myths that surrounded his character, including the coal given to naughty children.

Orbot and Cubot kept reporting them the times in the places to where they hadn't been, so they would be aware of how much time they had. And honestly—he grudgingly admitted—he and Sonic worked quite well together, perhaps better than he had with Shadow. But he didn't really want to tell him that, in fear of inflating his ego.

This was starting to turn out into a good, maybe the best, Christmas Eve. He might even possibly keep the hedgehog if he continued to not bug him.

Finally, it was midnight in Station Square, and Saint 'Nik was certain that the parade was over. When he told Sonic their destination, the hedgehog was floored.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get a move on!"

His excitement was palpable. In fact, though he was obviously tired, the sleigh went even faster than before, much to Santa's surprise.

When they arrived in the gigantic city, Sonic shouted over his shoulder, "I'm going to park this baby on a building!"

Before the fat man could protest, the sleigh was already heading straight for a building. This wasn't happening; this couldn't be happening. They were going to crash. But with great skill and grace—but mostly with a lot of luck, Saint 'Nik liked to think—Sonic was able to run up the building along with the sleigh, making himself perpendicular to the ground.

The fat man had his eyes closed the whole time, and when they were opened, Sonic and the sleigh were safely atop the roof. "How—"

Sonic himself almost couldn't believe it, but the thrill of accomplishing this feat left him beaming. "A Christmas miracle!" Shakily, Santa climbed out of his sleigh as the hedgedeer pranced about as if he couldn't stand still anymore. "He's somewhere in these alleyways. I'll go on ahead 'n' find 'im. Come down once you find the best present for 'im that ya have!" And with that, Sonic was gone in a blue blur off the building.

The fat man stood alone up on the roof until he realized what he had to do with great anger. So why had Sonic parked the sleigh up there if Santa was going have to climb down himself? Luckily, it wasn't a very tall building, but this still was quite upsetting to him.

Nevertheless he sighed and pulled his heavy coat closer in, observing the scene in the roads of Station Square. Wilted streamers and plastic cups were still littered out in the streets, making the once-holiday hotspot look like a ghost town. All the Christmas lights and decorations that adorned the town were either turned off or half-taken down from the crazy parade. It was like the aftermath of the rapture.

Absentmindedly, Santa nabbed a present, the one addressed to Tails, and hoisted his weight to begin climbing down the roof.

Silence pierced the area; he could hear only his labored breaths, the swishing of his pant legs, and the scraping of his shoes against the brick wall. His feet crunched into the snow shoved up against the sidewalks. He then found his footing and looked up to see beyond the foggy wisps leaving his mouth.

A lonely sidewalk stretched out before him, half-lit with the streetlights on the left and falling into the darkness of the alleys on the right.

Using his memory of where the streak of blue went, he trudged past one, two, three alleyways until he turned into the fourth one. The places where they had to go next came to his mind. There were still some of those big cities nearby and then some small suburbs and villages in the west. Surprisingly, despite his refusal to come to this place until midnight, they were making good time. All they had to do here was visit Sonic's little friend, and they could get right back to it.

With vigor, Saint 'Nik walked a couple steps into the alley. Sonic was up ahead on one knee, back turned to the fat man, not saying a word. He was on top of something, but Santa couldn't make out what it could be. A couple more steps toward him made him stop cold.

The slim body underneath the hedgehog was that of a golden-furred fox nearly blanketed fully by the snow.

More boisterously, the winter wind howled in the fat man's ears as he shook his head. "Shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot..." He could not be caught. He performed a perfect one-eighty turn as silently as possible and headed towards the end of the alley at break-neck speed. Rounding the corner, he poured out all energy on getting to his sleigh. Saint 'Nik quickly pulled up his walkie-talkie to his mouth. "Orbot, Cubot, bring the rockets. I don't care if you have to fly on them to get to Station Square, but I need them now. Repeat: I need them n—!"

Then something hit him with the force of what felt like a two-ton sleigh, and he collapsed face-first into the unforgiving snow. He flipped onto his back to meet the more callous green eyes of his hedgedeer. Sonic embodied the look not ever seen from Saint 'Nik, one that was full of wild energy, despair, and pure rage.

It was all directed at him.

"How could you?! I—I trusted you!"

There he was trapped and the target of increasing, soon-devastating rage with no escape, forced to face the fire. This was by far the worst Christmas Eve ever.

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><p><strong>So, things have taken a turn for the worse. I promise you though; there was a lot of foreSHADOWing before this. Yes, I realize that was quite lame.<strong>

**And hey, if you're also interested in my other ongoing stories, there is in fact a poll for which one should be updated more often. This will determine which you will be seeing more of in a smaller amount of time, so please, if it matters to you, give your opinion and vote. Much appreciated also if you would review this story. Thanks again!**

**-JD**


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